I Will Find You - pt I
by MadamDixA-Lot
Summary: Before the Dark One murdered Milah, she and Killian had a daughter; Mara. When Milah dies, Mara became the light of Killian's life. When Mara is 6 her father has a falling out with a business partner and loses his world. Now Mara is in Neverland where she meets her half brother, Baelfire. Part II is in the works, follow me for updates.
1. Prologue

**Killian**

Milah still glowed despite the glistening on her forehead. My gaze was pulled away from her face only by the wiggling bundle in her arms. A full head of dark hair sat on her head, with time it was sure to be as thick and long as her mother's; she had my blue eyes. I was sure I'd never set my eyes on another girl as beautiful as my wife, until today. I never would have imagined this day in my wildest dreams. I was nothing but a pirate. And yet, here I was with my beautiful wife and our beautiful daughter.

"Captain! Captain!"

"What is it Lewis? You know I am not to be bothered right now." My first mate should have known better than to be disturbing us, disturbing our moment of peace.

"I-I'm sorry, Captain. But this couldn't wait-"

"Of course it could. Now leave us!" I waved my hand dismissing him.

"Captain, this is important. The Dark One, he was just here."

The baby began weeping at the mention of his name. Milah gave me a worried look while trying to soothe our child.

"What the hell do you mean the Dark One was here?"

Lewis looked down at his boots, hesitating.

"Bloody hell Lewis! Spit it out!"

"I'm s-sorry Captain. We told him that you weren't on board. He said that he would let you prepare for what was to come when you did finally meet."

Milah and I stared at each other in utter shock.

"He said he would find you. He said he was going to take what was owed to him. Whether or not you're here." Lewis finished and I met Milah's gaze again, we stared at each other a moment.

"What about the baby? What if he hurts her?" Milah clutched the baby protectively. I thought for a moment. Our newborn could not be on this ship when the Dark One returned.

"You'll take her into the village at sunrise, I'll see to the Dark One, you'll return after sun down."

"Of course, I'll take her to the other side of the village, he'll never know."

"Uhm, ma'am, he said he wanted to see the bother of you. He'll know something has happened if you're not here with the Captain."

Milah looked at me. What could the Dark One possible want with my wife and I? Neither of us had ever even met the creature.

"Give her to one of your men, he can take her into the village. If he's coming for us he won't notice one of the crew is missing." Milah rushed through her sentence, we were both trying to think of a solution that didn't seem possible.

"I don't think I trust any of my men enough to care for my newborn for that long." I gave Lewis a hard look. I turned to Milah, ready to argue with her, but the look on her face told me that she was right. It would have to be a crew member. "I'll send Marcus. He's the most responsible deckhand on board."

"Thank you. Don't worry dear, all will be well." She touched my arm lightly. I smiled at her, even though I was feeling ill.

"Now get out Lewis. Leave me and my wife with our child. Tell Marcus of his duty." Lewis nodded his head and left. I turned back to Milah. "Come now, let me hold my little girl."

She was so delicate. I didn't dare hold her tightly for fear of breaking her.

"What shall we name her?" Milah beamed at me. I thought briefly.

"How have we possibly not found a name yet?" I shook my head at her, chuckling to myself.

"We're pirates, we had other things on our minds." She gave me a cheeky smile. I'd been in awe of Milah since we learned she was pregnant. It was only in the last month that she had slowed down. I didn't understand how she'd possibly done it. " _I_ was thinking Meena."

"That's one letter different from your name, love. A little conceited don't you think?" I raised my eyebrow at her.

She sat up in the bed and pulled herself closer to me.

"Perhaps, but I like it. Do you have a better idea?"

"I may have a few ideas up my sleeve, but, you need some rest. It's been a very long day."

I left her and the baby in our quarters and made my way to the deck. I stood at the hull, breathing in the night air. Nothing could ruin this day for me. Not even the Dark One.

 **3 Days Later**

"Captain? The babe has been crying for the past hour. No one can calm her. I think you're the only person who can soothe her." Lewis' voice shook. I hadn't moved from my spot in hours. After the Dark One left Lewis had bandaged my hand, but my eyes never left Milah. I hadn't left her side since he'd finished. I'd been sitting there, Milah laying on my lap, staring out at the sea; I hadn't even heard the baby crying.

I looked up at Lewis, suddenly back to my ship.

"The babe you say? When did Marcus return with her?"

"Hours ago sir. We didn't want to disturb your mourning." He stared at his feet as he spoke. My body ached. I couldn't think of the little wailing child in my chambers below deck. How could I possibly raise her? How could I even look at her? She would grow to look exactly like her mother; I couldn't bear the thought of it.

"Please sir, the wailing need to end and you're the only person who can do that."

"I will see to the babe. Prepare Milah's body for burial. We'll leave port once she is ready."

"Yes, Captain."

I tried getting up. I hadn't realized that my lower body was numb and I stumbled. My entire body ached, but I couldn't tell if it was from sitting on the hard deck for so many hours or from my heart break. It was likely a combination of the two.

In a haze, I made my way towards my quarters. The men on deck avoided looking me in the eye, all of them put their heads down as I passed. I could feel their eyes boring into me after I had passed them. They wouldn't look me in the eye but of course they had no problem staring at me like I was a wild dog. It made me sick to my stomach. Not only had just lost the love of my life, but now my crew thought I was weak. I had to do something to prove that I was still the man I was before the crocodile has his way with my hand; and my wife.

The child squirmed around in her crib. She had gone hoarse from screaming for so long. _How long have I been in a daze?_ I wondered as I pick the child up. I looked at her for a moment, wondering how I was ever supposed to care for this child? I couldn't imagine going on without her mother, but apparently I would have to.

"Sshhhh child, you're okay. I'm here now." I rocked her softly as I spoke. The words croaked out of me. I had apparently been crying myself. She reached up and touched my chin, I couldn't help but smile at her. She would be beautiful. She was my daughter. She was mine. I would mend my broken heart, and I would protect her. She would be the best pirate that sailed the realms. It was then that I knew what I would do. What I had to do to protect this beautiful little baby in my arms.

"Lewis!"

"Yes Captain?" His head popped into my captain, his eyes wide with concern.

"Find that goon with the magic bean. We're taking a trip."

"A trip where Captain?" He stepped into the chamber as he spoke. "Where will we go that we need a magic bean for?"

"You will see, Lewis."

I delicately placed the baby back in her crib. She was fast asleep. I was glad, hopefully she wouldn't wake during the journey. I turned to go back on deck but stopped dead in my tracks. All this time we'd only referred to her as the babe. Milah and I hadn't come up with a name. I had never told Milah what I wanted to name her. She had suggested Meena, but it was almost too close to her name to bare. I thought for a moment. An M name seemed right; after her mother somehow.

I smiled, making up my mind. Lewis was waiting for me at the door of my chamber.

"You look like a new man, that little girl is a miracle worker."

"Is her mother ready?"

"Yes Captain, and the captive with the bean is on deck as well."

"Good. And Lewis, my daughter will no longer be known as just the baby. Her name is Mara."

"Of course, Captain. I'll let the crew know that you've given her a name."

"Good. Now; let's get this over with. Then onto Neverland."

"Neverland, Captain? Are you sure you want to return there?"

"Don't question your captain. Pan gave me a proposition a while ago, I didn't take it then because of Milah, but now I see no reason why I can't take him up on it. We'll all get to live a little longer which means I'll get more time with my daughter. I see nothing but good in this."

"If you say so Captain. Your crew and I will follow you."

"Good. Now as I said, let's get this over with."


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter I**

 **Killian**

The point of the wooden sword jabbed me in the gut; hard. I grunted and fell to my knees; she'd knocked the wind out of me.

"DADDY! Oh no. Daddy, did I hurt you? I'm so sorry" My 6 year old stood over me. I hadn't anticipated how good she had gotten with a sword. I looked up to tell her I was fine but was struck by how much she already looked like her mother. Her long dark hair blew in her eyes. _How can she see with her hair in her eyes like that? And still be so good with a sword?_

"I'm fine, love. You've gotten better than I realized." I let her help me up. "Have you eaten yet? The sun is going down, it will be time for you to sleep soon."

"Yup! I told Smee he could have my supper if he gave me one of the cakes we got from Pan on our last trip to Neverland; but I only gave him a little bit and he took it! He's so silly, he'll do anything for extra supper."

"You shouldn't be sharing your rations. Even for some of Pan's cakes. No more of that, okay? No matter how gullible Smee is." We both laughed. She was so full of life; so like her mother. She pushed her hair out of her big blue eyes.

"Do I reaaaally have to go to bed? This is a pirate ship afterall. I should be allowed to stay up as long as I want."

"How long are you going to try that line? Pirates do need their sleep too. We all go to bed right after you do. Right men?"

All of the men on deck nodded their heads and murmured yes's. Mara put her hand on her hip and gave me an "I don't think so" look. I couldn't let her have her way tonight though.

"Not tonight love. Daddy has some business to attend to."

The men's heads all raised as I finished speaking. It wasn't often I told Mara no, and they knew who was coming if I did. So did she; her expression changed. She took her hand off her hip and looked at the floor.

"Come, I'll tell you a story to help you sleep."

She led the way down into the Captain's quarters where we both slept. Her bed was on the right of the quarters, mine was on the left. The crew always teased that I could never bring a woman here because of Mara, but I knew I wouldn't ever want another woman in my chambers. Mara made her way to her bed, I helped her change into her night shirt and tucked her.

"So, what do you want her hear about tonight?"

"Hm, tell me about how you met mommy again?"

"You always ask for that story."

"I like the way you look when you talk about her. You always seem so happy when you talk about her."

I smiled at her. Nobody would ever replace my Milah, but our daughter did a wonderful job of filling the hole that losing Milah had left.

"See, that's the look."

I realized I'd gotten lost in thought and began retelling the story. I didn't tell her all of the details, like that her mother had had a husband and a son at home when we met, or that it was that husband who eventually turned into the Dark One and murdered her, but I still did my best to tell her the truth. I wanted her to know her mother the way I remembered her, strong, beautiful and fierce. Mara had all of these attributes, with all of my charm and determination.

I could see her eyes starting to get heavy as she put her head in my lap. I played with her hair and she fell asleep and I reminisced. I was just finishing the story when Lewis knocked on the door lightly.

"Captain, it's almost time."

I nodded and began trying to lift Mara off of my without waking her. She stirred before rolling over and curling up in a ball. I tucked her in and quietly snuck out of the quarters. Lewis was waiting for me at the door.

"I don't think it's safe for her here anymore captain. Not with how Pan has been lately. He's threatened her more than once already."

"I'm well aware Lewis." We made our way up on deck as I continued. "But I don't exactly have anywhere I can take her do I? I'd have to leave the Jolly Roger and all of yous on your own, give up being a pirate. She's strong, she's a nearly as good a fighter as some of the men on this boat. She's fine right here."

"Of course Captain. I was merely suggesting-"

"Yes, I know Lewis, stop doing that. Now, when will he be here?"

"Turn around."

The dark, growling voice startled both Lewis and I. We turned to see the dark figure hovering above us. No matter how often he visited, his appearance was disturbing. Pan's shadow acted as his henchman, following up on tasks and carrying out Pan's dirty work.

"Ah yes, there you are, I hadn't noticed you up.. there. To what do we owe this pleasure?"

"Pan is getting impatient. He wants to know what is taking so long."

"It's proving harder to acquire than anticipated. We're close though. It's only a matter of time."

"Time is coming to an end for you Hook. I'll be back for the girl if you don't deliver within 24 hours."

I think I went blind momentarily, rage boiled inside of me. It wasn't the first time Pan had threatened Mara, but unlike the other times I now had a time limit. There was no way I would be able to acquire what he needed in 24 hours. I had been searching for weeks already and hadn't been able to find any leads. I needed more time.

"You're not touching her. I'll find it. I just need more time."

"There is no more time. Pan needs it. Now. Get it done or we'll be sending reinforcements."

"Get off my ship. I'm done dealing with Pan. Forget whatever deals we've had, they're all over. I never want to see either of you again. GO!"

The shadow flew over the side of the ship and disappeared into the night. I was so angry I thought I would explode. I gripped the side of the ship to try and steady my self and catch my breath. I looked out after the shadow, panting in anger. Lewis stood quietly behind me.

"AAHHHH!" I kicked the ship and I screamed. "He is not taking her. Not over my dead body. I lost Milah, I'm not losing her too." I slammed my fist on the rail. I would do what ever I could to protect her. I had promised myself that the day her mother died.

"Captain, you know the men and I will do everything in our power to protect her."

"Good. But she won't need protecting. I have a plan. I know where to get what Pan wants. Dock at the nearest port. Come get me then; I'll take care of it."

I stormed off as Lewis agreed. I made my way back to my quarters to check on Mara. I found her sleeping in my bed; she must have had a nightmare. She stirred as I climbed in beside her. I lay on my back, my arm wrapped around her. She snuggled up against me, and I started playing with her hair. Playing with Milah's hair had always helped me sleep at night, Mara's hair was no different. She sighed and rolled over, snuggling up on my chest. I kissed the top of her head and closed my eyes, trying to sleep.

"Daddy?"

"What is it, love? I thought you were asleep."

"You won't let the dark ghost from taking me away will you?"

My eyes shot open. Had he been here? Trying to scare her?

"I would never let anyone take you away from me. Not while I'm alive. Go back to sleep, all will be well come morning."

I tried my best to keep my hands from shaking as I continued to play with her hair. She settled back onto my chest and fell back to sleep. Pan was serious this time. He was going to take her if I couldn't pull this off. I had to do everything I could to find that ridiculous rag doll by tomorrow evening. I couldn't wrap my head around why he needed it, but I would find it.

As I drifted to sleep I wondered exactly how I would pull this off. All I knew was that I didn't have choice; I had to pull it off and I would.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter II**

 **Killian**

I awoke to men screaming and canon fire. I looked out the window at the end of my quarters and saw the sun shining brightly; it must be midmorning. Why hadn't Lewis woken me up before this? Time was of the essence.

I hardly had time to for the thoughts with the ship lurched to the side, knocking Mara off the bed. She sat right up, hair covering her whole face.

"What's going on? What happened?" She tried to push her hair out of her eyes but there was too much of it, much of it stayed covering her face.

"I don't know; you stay here. I'll go find out. Keep the door closed, do not let anyone but me in, okay?"

She nodded and I was off, grabbing my sword and hook on my way out the door. I closed it and waited to make sure she locked it behind me. After I heard the latch I quickly made my way up on deck. I could smell sulfur almost immediately when I got on deck. It was total chaos on deck. Men were running everywhere; swords were clanging against each other and through the smoke, Black Beards ship coming at us at full speed.

"LEWIS! LEWIS! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?" I bellowed at the frantic men on deck. Lewis looked up from the cannon he was manning.

"Black Beard, Captain! Don't know how he found us or why he's attacking but we've got quite the battle on our hands! May be best to have Marcus take Mara!"

"She'll be fine, she's tucked away in our quarters; we don't have the time to prepare a skiff to take her!" I grabbed my sword and started fighting along side my men. Through the smoke and carnage I could see the giant ship getting closer. Soon enough all of Black Beards men would be here and we'd be outmanned. My thoughts turned to Mara; she was safe in our chambers for now, but she wouldn't be if we didn't gain control of the situation. I began fighting harder. Man after man went down and I began feeling like we could over take the enemy.

 **Mara**

The banging and shouting kept getting louder and louder. The boat was rocking so hard I could barley stand. I grabbed my wooden sword and tried to run to the corner to hide. I wedged myself between my bed and the wall of the quarters. I could hear men screaming and see them falling off the ship from the window at the back of the room. I tried to cover my ears to block out all of the noise. Our ship had been attacked before, but daddy had always made Marcus take me away from the fighting on the skiff. This was the first battle I had ever experienced, and I would be glad if I didn't experience one ever again.

The ship lurched to the side again, throwing me from my cubbyhole. I landed on my knees; I couldn't see anything because all of my hair was in my eyes. I sat on my feet and tried to push it aside but it relented. With a crash the window at the end of the room exploded. I looked up to see an old man with a long dark beard climbing into the room. I scurried back into my cubby before he could see me. As I settled back into my cubby I realized I had left my sword in the middle of the room. I stuck my head out of the cubby to see where the man was; he was going through daddy's desk. I hoped he would find what he was looking for in there and then leave. I settled back in and waited.

I could hear his boots on the hard wood coming towards my hiding spot. I held my breath, not daring to make a noise. I closed my eyes, too scared to see what was happening in the room. Slowly I heard the man walk over by my wood sword. I so wished I had grabbed it. I had no way of defending myself now. He chuckled and I heard him walk towards me. I opened my eyes and screamed when I saw him standing directly in front of my, staring down at me. He smiled ghoulishly down at me as he spoke.

"Now, here's the treasure I was looking for."

 **Killian**

We were slowly getting a handle on Black Beards men. I knew I had to fight harder than I ever had before. If they were here for any treasure they would be trying to get into my quarters to get to my safe. Normally I wouldn't be so desperate to save it; there would be more treasure, and more battles to be fought for it.

Just as quickly as the battle had begun, it seemed to have ended. Black Beard's men seemed to be dispersing quickly, jumping across to their ship or onto skiffs. The smoke began to settle and I knew it was over. I ran over to the starboard side to see what damage we had done to them. There didn't seem to be nearly as much damage to their ship as there was to ours. I wondered why the sudden retreat when suddenly a dark figure flew past my face. In the same second I heard her.

"DADDY!"

I saw her; Black Beard was holding her by the collar of her shirt over the edge of his ship.

"No." The word was barely audible. "LEWIS! FULL MAST, CATCH UP TO THEM. NOW. WE CAN'T LET THEM GET AWAY WITH HER!"

"Captain there's too much damage to our ship, we won't be able to catch up them."

"I DON'T CARE. NOW. WE CAN'T LOSE THEM!"

Lewis paled and turned, shouting orders at the crew. I ran to the bow, I didn't know what to do, I was stuck on this ship and the ship wasn't moving fast enough. Black Beard had moved further onto the deck, I could hear Mara screaming for me. Tears began running down my face. I couldn't help her; there was nothing I could do.

"I'M COMING MARA! I'M COMING! DON'T WORRY, I'LL FIND YOU!"

"Don't hold your breath."

I turned. Pan's shadow hovered before me. I lunged. I should have known.

"You! This was your plan all along! You were never going to give me the day to find the doll! You were just going to distract me while Pan took the only good thing I had left in my life!"

"We gave you all the time we could. Black Beard proved to be a better business partner."

"SO YOU TAKE MY DAUGHTER?"

"We needed you to understand that our business transactions were over. Pan will take care of her. Don't worry."

I turned my back to the shadow. I could see we were gaining on Black Beard. I started to feel a glimmer of hope. I saw the shadow fly up towards the speeding ship ahead of us. I landed momentarily in front of Black Beard before flying up into the mast. The giant canvas slowly began turning black, and I could see it begin pulling upward. Suddenly my glimmer of hope was gone. The ship slowly lifted up into the sky, disappearing behind the clouds. I sank to my knees, I was sure my heart was going to stop beating. The last thing I heard before the ship totally disappeared was Mara screaming Daddy.

I sat there until I was sure that I wasn't going to wake up from this nightmare. I could hear my crew cleaning up. Just like when Milah was murdered nobody bothered me. I slowly made my way to my quarters. I wasn't sure how my legs were moving. I found my flask of rum and sat on Mara's bed. I downed the entire flask in one shot. I was numb; even number than I had been when I lost Milah. The only difference now, was that I didn't have anyone to soothe my pain. I rummaged around my quarters searching for more rum. I would drown myself in it. From this point forth I would be ruthless; I would be the pirate I was before I met my wife. I would drink, pillage and bed whatever woman I wanted. I would fill this hole in me with alcohol and carnage until I found my daughter.


	4. Chapter 3

**Part II**

 **Chapter III**

 **Mara**

I watched daddy's ship disappear behind the clouds; I kept screaming for him but I knew he probably couldn't hear me anymore. My throat hurt and I had tears and snot running down my face, and getting in my hair.

"Get up child, you're making a fool of yourself." The tall man started walking away as he spoke.

"TAKE ME BACK! PLEASE! MY DADDY WILL GIVE YOU WAHTEVER YOU WANT! PLEASE!" My voice cracked was a screamed. I chased the man and grabbed at his coat, pleading for him to take me back. He turned and hit me on the face. I fell back and my hand rushed up to my face. My cheek burned where his hand had made contact.

"You, child, are the best business transaction I've ever made. Pan will be very pleased."

"What do you mean I'm the best business transaction!? I'm a person, not a treasure!"

"Oh but you are. See, Pan was sick of your father not following through with his deals, _you_ were the reason he wasn't following through, if the deal was too dangerous for you, he just wouldn't bother. Now, Pan will have you and your father will have the opportunity to be a pirate worthy of the title."

"My daddy's a great pirate! He's the best in all the realms! And he never had to steal a kid to get that great!" He laughed and kept walking. I stayed right where I was. I looked around me, we were high up in the clouds now. The air was thin but still breathable. I slowly got up and walked to edge of the boat. The clouds were passing quickly. I looked down; I couldn't even see the ground we were up so high. I thought for a second that maybe I should jump; I couldn't bear the thought of letting this Pirate hand me over to Pan like some trophy, but I also knew it would destroy daddy if he found out I was dead. At least if I was alive he could find me.

"You shouldn't stand so close to the edge when we're so high up. You could fall off"

I turned to see a little boy, about my age standing a few feet behind me. He looked just like the big man who had kidnapped me only his hair was a sandy brown instead of raven black.

"Who are you? You can't tell me what to do. I'm going to jump so you can't take me to Pan. I'd rather be dead."

"I'm Louis, Black Beard's son." I chuckled. Of course it was okay for Black Beard to have his kid on his ship, but it wasn't okay for my daddy to have his. "My father sent me to come get you and take you down to the cabins. You'll be staying in mine until we get to Neverland."

"I'm not going anywhere with you. I'm going to stay right here until we get there."

"But you'll freeze to death up here. We won't be in Neverland until tomorrow morning. You can't stay out here at night."

"I'm not leaving. I'll be glad to freeze. Your daddy is not taking me to Neverland."

"Well okay, suit yourself. You won't get anything to eat up here either. And our ship has the best food in all the realms."

"I don't care." I crossed my arms over my chest and sat down, leaning my back against the railing. The only way they were going to get me to move was if they dragged me kicking and screaming. As Louis walked away a cold wind swept by, sending a chill down my back. Louis turned and gave me an 'I told ya so' look. I stuck my tongue out at him and he chuckled and kept walking away. I made sure to watch where he went in case I did need to get under cover.

I sat for what felt like forever, until night finally fell. The darker it got the colder it became on the deck. I wanted to desperately to get up and find shelter but I wasn't going to give in. Slowly my eyes became heavy and sleep found me.

I woke up in a bed. I was snuggled up under a heavy blanket. I could hear someone snoring on the floor by my bed. I sat up, pushing the hair out of my face and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. I couldn't remember how I'd gotten in this room. I looked down and saw Louis was the person snoring. His hair was all in his face like mine always was. I climbed out of bed and kicked him in the stomach. He lurched and groaned before opening his eyes.

"What was that for?"

"Did you bring me down here? I said I was staying up on deck."

"Do you really think I could pick you up and carry you all the way down here?" I kicked in the stomach him again for being mean, harder this time.

"Stop that! I'm just a kid! I can't pick up another person and carry them all this way! That's all I meant!" I put my hands on my hips and glared down at him.

"Well talk clearly next time. Now why am I down here?"

"You were going to freeze up there! Pan wants you alive and well not an icicle!"

I kicked him a third time but instead of grunting and groaning he lunged at me. We landed on the bed and he started trying to punch me. I grabbed him by the wrists and rolled over so I was on top of him. I took both of his wrists in one and lifted my arm to punch him back. Before I could swing at him I was being pulled away by the collar of my shirt. I was tossed into the corner of the small cabin, hitting my head against the wall as I landed.

"For shame Louis! Being overtaken by girl like that! You need to work on your fighting."

"Sorry father, I'm getting better." The man turned to me and I was sure he was going to slap me again.

"I guess your father isn't as awful a pirate as I thought." He chuckled once before leaving the room. I stayed in the corner waiting for Louis to leave so I could cry. I looked down trying to keep from letting the tears spill out before he left but he never did.

"Are you going to cry again? You're such a baby. Father says your fathers a baby too."

I stood back up and went to lunge at him again but the boat lurched and I fell over. Louis rushed out of the room to see what was happening. I got up and slowly made my way out of the room. Finding my way up onto deck I realized that I could smell the salt water of the sea; we must of landed in Neverland. I made my way to the edge of the ship to look out at the familiar island. We were passing Skull Rock, we'd make landfall soon. I was dreading it.


	5. Chapter 4

They tied my hands behind me before walking me off the ship. I held my head up high as we walked off the ship. Daddy had always taught me that if you get captured to keep your head held high.

We made our way through the jungle to Pan's camp. I knew the trail quite well since daddy and I had walked it many times. The path was clear but there were palm leaves at all of the men's faces. I couldn't help but giggle, as they got frustrated with the leaves. Eventually someone took out a machete and started chopping the leaves down as we went.

The trail seemed to never end. It was long and had sharp twists and turns. We walked for hours into the heart of jungle. Walking this path was always my favorite parts of being in Neverland. Once I had been sure I'd seen a tall brown skinned girl standing just a few yards off the trail. I could remember her vividly. Her skinned was a dark golden color, she had long black hair that had been twisted into braids that fell down to her waist and she had been wearing what looked like animal hide for a dress. We had made eye contact and she smiled at me, but when I blinked she was gone. Daddy hadn't believed me when I told him. He said the only people on the island were Pan, the lost boys and a green faerie.

Now every time we passed that spot I looked to see if she was there again. She never was. We were coming up to the spot now. I was looking all around me, hoping she would be there, hoping that maybe she would see I'm a captive and help me escape. When we came to it I stopped dead in my tracks. It wasn't the girl, but a boy. He was a few years older than me, maybe 12 or 13. Big dark curls sat on the top of his head and his eyes got wide when he realized I had spotted him. It looked like he had been coming to great us, but when he saw my hands tied behind me he stopped.

The men started yelling at me to keep moving and Louis gave me a shove. I started walking again but my eyes never left the boy until after we had turned the last corner. We came out into a huge clearing in the jungle. The smell of cooking meat and open flame filled my lungs as we entered the camp. The chattering that we had been able to hear outside of the camp silenced as soon as we came in. I felt like a wild animal at a carnival; I was the main attraction.

"Your prize, Pan." Black Beard shoved me forward and I fell on my knees in front of him. Pan walked up to me slowly, and sly grin on his face. He was uglier now. He had always looked like a weasel, but now that I knew what kind of person he really was it was worse.

"What happened to her cheek? It looks bruised."

"She and my son got into a bit of a scrap this morning. I promise, she has been perfectly taken care of."

Pan grabbed my by my chin and forced my head up to look at him. His beady eyes stared into mine and he chuckled.

"Did your father weep when he realized we had taken you? Did you see it? What was it like?"

I felt my cheeks get hot. My blood started pumping so hard my vision blurred for a few moments. I jerked my head out of his grip and before he had the chance to move out of the way I bit his fingers. I bit down as hard as I could, till I thought maybe I'd bite it right off. Just when I tasted the first drop of blood something crashed into the back of my head. It knocked Pan's finger out of my mouth and me down flat on my face. Pan was screaming while his henchman Felix tried to wrap a rap around it to stop the bleeding. Through the stars in my eyes I felt Louis pick me up and settle me back on my feet.

All of the screaming and commotion ended once Pan's finger was wrapped. I smiled and stuck my tongue out at him. Before I could me he rushed at me and punched my in the eye. I feel backward but just before I landed Louis caught me. For a second time he helped me back up to my feet. I really had stars in my eyes this time. I could feel the blood rushing up into my eye as it began to swell. I guessed it was a good thing Daddy wasn't here to see me like this, with a bruised cheek, bumped up head and what was going to be a black eye. I'd never been treated so poorly in my life.

"Felix. Take her to visit Wendy while I finish my business with Black Beard here."

Pan looked like a weasel, but Felix looked like a blond rat. He grabbed my by the arm and all but dragged me down a trail at the other side of the camp. Before we exited the camp I turned to see Louis, I wanted to thank him for letting me share his room the night before; I didn't get the chance to say anything before Felix pushed me out of the camp, but I could tell that Louis was sad to see me go. This trail was just was twisty and turny but had less palm leaves and had rocks all over the place. It was harder to walk on this trail, especially with my hands tied behind my back.

Just as we turned the sharpest corner on the trail Felix fell flat on his face. I stopped and looked around but didn't see anyone. Staring down at him, I nudged him lightly with my foot. He didn't budge. I wanted to run, but I knew the trail was to rugged and I'd fall over, with my hands tied behind me I'd never being able to get myself back up and when Felix found me, it wouldn't be pretty.

Before I could decide what my next move was someone was behind me, cutting the ropes that tied my hands. I turned to see who had freed me and was shocked to see it was the boy from the trail earlier.

"Come on, we have to get out of here before he wakes up!"

He grabbed my hand and pulled me off the trail. We ran through the woods as fast as we could; leaves and branches whacked and scratched at us as we went. I didn't know my legs could move that fast, but I guessed I was just so full of adrenaline.

We didn't stop until we had made it to a small encampment in the middle of the jungle. I collapsed with my back against a tree, the boy stood just a few feet away from me with his hands on his knees. We were both panting so hard. I could hear my blood pumping in my ears and my head was throbbing.

We stayed there for a long time, just trying to catch our breath. Finally, once we'd begun breathing normally again, I finally spoke.

"Thank you for saving me. I don't know where Felix was taking me, but I knew it wasn't going to be good."

"No problem. Usually when I see you you're with your father, but when I saw you with Black Beard I knew you must be in trouble."

"What do you mean you usually see me with my daddy? I've never seen you before. How do you know my daddy?"

He stared at me for a moment, searching for his words. He looked down at his feet, obviously not sure how to continue.

"Your father saved me when I first came here. Pan's shadow had taken me but I'd escaped, and landed on his ship. He made sure Felix and the others didn't get me. You were on the ship, but you were a newborn so that's why you don't remember me."

Daddy had never talked about a boy he saved in Neverland; I didn't know what to think of what he was saying.

"You're lying! My daddy never talked about you, and he would have if he had really saved you."

"I was selfish so we got into a fight, and I left. He wasn't happy about it."

I pulled my knees up to my chest and thought about all of the stories daddy had told me. He never once told me about saving a boy in Neverland. I didn't know what to think of it.

The wind stared to pick, carrying with it the smell of the jungle; damp earth with a hint of campfire. If I breathed deep I could smell something cooking. My stomach rumbled and I realized I hadn't eaten since my last supper on the Jolly Roger. The boy must have heard because he started to walk away, gesturing for me to follow before entering his hut. I got up and cautiously followed him.


	6. Chapter 5

The hut had seemed small from outside, but was actually quite comfortable on the inside. It was round and warm. He had a small bed on one side with a table at the end of it. On the wall beside the bed he had etched lines, I tried to count them but there were too many of them.

"Its my tally for how many days I've been here. There's one thousand, nine hundred and seventy one."

"That's really how long you've been here?"

"I haven't figured out how to get off of the island yet."

I flopped down onto his bed. He'd been here for years, and he'd never found a way off. All I could hope was that daddy would find me.

"My daddy is gonna come find me, I know it. We won't be here for too long."

"You mean you won't be here for too long."

He was rummaging around at the opposite end of the room. I could see that he was preparing something for us to eat; it smelled sweet so it was probably some kind of fruit.

"What do you mean _I_ won't be here long? You don't think my daddy will take you too?"

"I already told you, the last time I saw your papa we had a bit of a disagreement. You two have been here tons of times since and he's never offered to take me, what makes you think this time will be any different?"

"I didn't even know you were here, it's probably just because he didn't know where to find you."

He stopped for a moment, thinking about what I had said. After a few seconds he turned towards me. He had cut a coconut in half and was using the two pieces as bowls. He handed me one before sitting down next to me. I had been right; it was filled with juicy looking fruits. Pan had always made sure our kitchen was stocked before we left Neverland so I wasn't worried about eating any of them. Some were red, others green and yellow. They were all incredibly sweet and delicious. We sat in silence as we ate. We were both thinking about what we were going to do next.

"I just realized, I never asked what your name was."

"Baelfire. I already know yours."

"How? That's kind of weird."

"I told you before when we were outside, you were on the ship when the shadow dropped me, but you were just a baby then. Your dad let me see you one night when he couldn't get you to stop crying."

I stared him for a while, trying to digest what he was saying. I really had been on daddy's ship. What else hadn't daddy told me?

"What else do you know?" I asked. He looked down into his empty bowl. He knew something he wasn't telling me. "Tell me, please."

He looked up at the hole in roof. I followed his gaze up, it'd gotten dark out already. The wind was picking up, blowing harder than before against the hut. I looked around us, wondering where I was going to sleep. I didn't want to leave the warmth of the hut, but I didn't know if Baelfire would let me stay. My body felt heavy, and I knew I was going fall asleep soon.

"You can take my bed tonight, I'll sleep on the floor. I'll go out tomorrow and find stuff for a second bed. You'll have to lay low here for a while until Pan moves on and finds something else to do with time."

"You don't think he'll come after me?"

He got up, taking my bowl with him. He set them down on the table where he'd prepared our supper. He knelt down below the table and pulled out a blanket. He started setting up a pallet for himself on the floor before answering my question.

"Pan loves playing games. I'm sure he'll be around at some point. You'll just have to watch your back and try not wander too far from the hut for a few weeks."

"Well I'm sure my daddy will find me sooner than that." I snuggled up under the covers of Baelfires bed. Before climbing into his pallet he stoked the fire beside the door. I hadn't noticed it when we entered, but it suddenly made sense why the hut was so warm and cozy. I watched him while his back was turned to me. It was strange how comfortable I was around him. He had a certain familiarity about him. He turned away from the little fire and made his way back to his pallet. After getting comfortable under his blanket he turned to me.

"Did your papa ever teach you how to fight?"

"Of course! I was almost as good as some of the crew on his ship!" He chuckled at me.

"I bet you had a sword in your hand before you could even walk."

"Yea, I never got the chance to use a real sword. But my wooden one was definitely put to good use." I missed my sword. I had left it on the floor in the Jolly Roger. I was sure daddy would keep it safe for me until he found me.

"That's good. We can practice together if you want. I've been trying to get good. You never know what could happen on this island, and if Pan is looking for you it'll be good to be prepared."

I settled down and readied myself for sleep. Through the hole in the roof I looked up at the stars. It was a dark and blustery night, but the stars were bright up there. I could hear Baelfire's breathing steady and my eye's slowly started getting heavy. I thought of daddy and how I hadn't seen him in two days. Tears started welling up in my eyes and I squeezed them tight. I wished myself back onto Jolly Roger as sleep took me.

"Mara, darling wake up. It's time to get up." A lady's voice interrupted my sleep. It was sweet and soft; comforting my heavy heart. I opened my eyes to see who was waking me. The woman who woke me was beautiful. She had long dark hair like mine, and bright grey eyes. She smiled down at me as I sat up in my bed. I looked past her and realized we were back on the Jolly Roger.

"Daddy found me! I knew he would! Where is he?!" Her smile became sad. I got up and ran onto the deck. It was totally empty. The woman followed me up.

"We're all alone darling. I came to speak with you."

"But who are you? Where's daddy?"

"You're dreaming dear. It's me, mummy." I suddenly knew why she had seemed so familiar. Daddy had a drawing of her he kept in his desk. When I couldn't sleep at night I'd sneak out of bed, find it and look at it. I rushed over to her and hugged her hard.

"Oh you've grown up so beautifully, darling. I'm so proud of you."

She knelt down and held my head tight between her hands and kissed my forehead.

"Why are you here, mummy?"

"I came to tell you you're going to be all right. I know things seem dark and scary right now, but it's going to be okay. Baelfire is going to take good care of you." She let my head go and her hands slid down to mine.

"But daddy is coming to get me right? He isn't going to leave me here."

"He wouldn't dream of it, darling; but Pan is doing everything he can to keep him from you. He's also having a very hard time dealing with losing you, darling. It may take some time for him to heal enough to be able to come for you."

I didn't know what to say. I knew Pan didn't want daddy to find me, but I never thought that he'd be so upset that he wouldn't be able to try.

"How long will I have to have to wait?"

"I don't know darling. But I know you will be fine with Baelfire. He'll take very good care of you, I just know it."

I was quiet for a moment. I wanted to stay here forever; if I couldn't be with my daddy I'd stay with my mommy. I felt my eyes well up with tears again; I was so tired of crying. It made my black eye hurt. Mummy hugged me again.

"I know it's hard, darling. But I know you can do it, you're a very strong little girl."

"I love you, mummy."

"I love you too, darling."

We stayed holding each other for a long time. Slowly she let go of me and stood up. She was tall, and slender. She was the most the beautiful woman I had ever seen. I hoped I would be as beautiful as her when I grew up.

"Now go back to the Neverland, darling. I'll be here in your dreams whenever you need me."

She smiled sweetly at me. I felt my body begin to wake up. Before I left my dreamland I heard a disgusting crunching noise. Mummy's face twisted in pain as she felt to her knees. Standing behind her was a short man with scaley sick green skin; he had her heart in his hand. I screamed at him to stop as he crushed it into dust. He giggled manically as he released the dust into the wind.

"Time to wake up, deary."

I sat straight up in bed screaming.


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter VI**

"What!? What is it? What's going on?"

I sat in bed panting. Baelfire was standing in the middle of the room with a sword in his hands. He stood there ready to strike.

"It's okay Baelfire, I'm fine. I just had a bad dream." Tears were streaming down my face as I spoke. He put the sword down on the table and came and sat with me on the bed. He looked at me awkwardly, not sure what to do.

"What was your dream about?"

"I saw my mummy. She told me that my daddy wasn't coming for me. Not yet anyways."

"I figured that, Pan is going to do everything in his power to keep your dad out of here. And Pan has lots of friends in low places. No matter how hard he tries, he can't come get you."

I let out a loud cry and let my head fall into my hands. I felt so hopeless. I missed my daddy. I missed Smee trading his supper for an extra cake. And now I missed my mummy too. I kept my face in my hands while I cried. I let myself ride the waves of pain and sadness as the tears rushed out. I felt Baelfire slowly move over on the bed and slide is arms around me. He held me as a shook and cried.

We must have stayed like that for quite a while because when we finally separated we were both stiff. My body ached and still shook from crying. I hiccupped a little as I wiped my eyes.

"Thank you. You're being so nice to me."

"You've been through a lot. I'll do whatever I can to help you out."

"But you barely know me, you really don't have to be so nice to me."

"I want to. We may not know each other very well personally, but I feel like I need to help those who need it. My papa never did, and I know I don't want to be anything like him."

"My daddy used to say the same thing about his daddy."

"Yea, he told me about that too. Both of our papa's weren't very good at their jobs." He looked sad as her spoke.

"What were your mummy and daddy like?"

"My father was a coward. I didn't really know my mother."

"What do you mean? How was your father a coward?"

"Have you ever heard of the Dark One?" I shook my head. "Really? Well, he's in control of a lot of magic. It's all in a dagger that he keeps with him at all times. He's also my papa. He uses his power to hurt people rather than help them. He found the dagger to try and save me from the ogre wars, but all of the power went to his head. He's awful now."

"He seems like a bad man. Is that why you left?"

"Yea, I was trying to find a land with no magic for us to go to, but he didn't come with me. He let me go. He wouldn't let the magic go." He lowered his head as he finished speaking.

"Wow, he really is a coward. What about your mother? You said you didn't really know her."

"Um, she left my papa and me when I was young."

"That's horrible. Why would she do such a thing?"

"Don't say that about her. My papa probably wasn't much of a husband. She um, met someone else, who made her happier and they ran away together."

"And she just left you behind? Why would she do such a thing? She sounds awful."

"Stop saying that about our mother! She wasn't awful she was just trying to find her happy ending!" He rushed to his feet as the words poured out.

I sat there shocked at his outburst. I wasn't sure if I was more shocked at him yelling at me, or saying _our_ mother instead of my mother.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled." He sat back down on the bed.

"You said our."

"What?"

"You said our mother."

"Oh." We sat there in silence for a moment. He looked down at his hands while I stared at him. I could tell he was thinking hard about what to say to me next. I didn't know what to think.

"You didn't just save me because it was the right thing to do, did you?" He shook his head. "Your mummy left your daddy for my daddy didn't she."

He nodded his head. This was why mummy had been so sure Baelfire would take care of me, because he was her son; my brother.

"Is that why you and my daddy got in a fight?"

"Kind of. He didn't tell me that he was the reason my mother left me until I found a picture of her on the table in his quarters. I thought he had kidnapped her. Then I realized you were my half sister. I was so upset that I made him leave me here. He tried to get me to stay, so you could have your brother, and I guess he liked the thought of having his wife's son around. I've wished for years that I had let him talk me into staying."

My head was spinning. I couldn't understand why daddy hadn't told me I had a brother. Or how he and mummy had really met. I sat there, still in shock.

"Are you okay, Mara? I know this is probably a lot to take in. I mean, it's been 6 years and I'm still trying to wrap my head around it." He reached out and touched my hand. I wanted to cry again. All of this, being kidnapped, losing daddy, and now finding out I had a half brother; it was all too much for me. I felt like I was going to explode.

"Mara, if you want some time, or some space, I'll understand. I need to go out and get some supplies anyways, I'll leave you here to process." He got up and started preparing to leave. I sat for a moment, still unable to move from shock. Just as he was about to leave I rushed off the bed. I knew what I was going to do.

"Wait. If you're really my brother then I want to act like it. I'm coming with you. I want to get to know this island better. Be my older brother and help me get around here."

He stood in the door for a minute, staring at me. He was the one in shock now. Then he smiled.

"Lets get going then."


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter VII**

I was halfway out the door before Baelfire was pushing me back into the hut.

"What are you doing? I thought we were going out to explore the island."

"We are, but first you need to be armed. Pan has eyes everywhere, he's gonna know where we are the second we leave. You'll need a sword or something." He started rummaging around the hut. He already had his sword in his hilt; I didn't really see why he would have needed or have a second sword. He paused and nodded his head to himself before turning and presenting me with a homemade bow and quiver of arrows.

"I've never shot an arrow before in my life, I don't think I can use that."

"It's pretty easy. Come on, you can try it on a tree outside." I followed him out the door again. Once outside he set me up to try shooting the bow. He showed me how to sight it and shoot before stepping back behind me.

I did everything exactly how Baelfire had showed me. I pulled the string of the bow back by my ear and looked down the edge of the arrow, sighting where he told me to shoot. I let the string go and the arrow went flying. Right past the tree I was supposed to hit and into the jungle. I turned and put my hand on my hip.

"I told you I couldn't do it." He had his hands on his knees, bent over laughing at me. I stomped over to him and step hard on his foot.

"Ow! It's just because your hair was in your eyes, pull your hair back and you'll get it."

"I don't have anything to pull my hair back, and I don't want to anyways. You know how to use this, you take it, and I'll take your sword."

"You know this is a real sword right? If you were still using a wooden one on the Jolly Roger I doubt your papa would be very happy with me if I give you a real one."

"Well my daddy isn't here is he? Now trade."

"No, you'll figure out how to use the bow, it'll work for now. We can go see Tink later, she'll know how we can get you a sword."

"Who's Tink?"

"An ex faerie. She had her powers taken away and was banished here a year or so ago. She's close to Pan, but she'll help me out when I need it. I can't tell her the sword is for you, because she might go tell Pan where you are, but she should still be able to find me another sword."

"If she'd go tell Pan about me, then why do you trust her?"

"She's only ally's with Pan for her own safety, like anyone on this island."

"We're not exactly ally's of Pan's right now, Bae." He stood up a little straighter when I said Bae. "What's wrong?"

"It's um, just that my papa used to call me Bae." He seemed sad and unsure as he spoke.

"I won't say it again, I'm so-"

"No, no don't worry about it. It's kind of nice to hear it again." We smiled at each other; I could get used to having a big brother.

"Here, you're probably better with it than I am anyways. Just don't fall on the pointy end." He handed me the sword and took the bow and quiver from me.

"I know how to not hurt myself with a sword. Daddy never trusted me with a real one, he said I was still too young. But I know what I'm doing with it."

"We'll see, come on."

We headed out down the trail we'd come running down the day before. Continuing down the path, I found this part was a lot smoother. It was straight and didn't have any lumps or rocks. The dirt was soft under our feet and there weren't any leaves in our faces. It was nice walking along this path. The morning air was cool and fresh on my face. The air smelled damp and musty from the morning dew. As much as I missed daddy, I felt like I could be okay here.

We had been walking along the trail for some time when I felt something wiz down past my face. I looked down and saw the arrow I'd shot into the jungle. I looked around me but there was no one but Bae up ahead of me. I looked up into the tree above me. Lying across a branch above me was the girl I'd seen years ago. I was about to call Bae over when she lifted her finger to her pursed lips. I looked back at Bae, he was getting farther away from me and I didn't want to lose him. I looked back up into the tree and the girl was gone.

"How does she move so fast?" I asked myself as I bent down to pick the arrow up.

"Hey! What are you waiting for? Come on!" Bae had stopped and was waiting for me up further on the trail where it turned into a T.

"Um, yea. Hey, I found that arrow I shot." I jogged up to where he stood. He gave me a curious look as I handed him the arrow.

"That's weird, you shot it in the opposite direction."

"Yea, that's what I thought. It was like it fell from the sky or something."

"Now that's sounds more plausible, what with the way you shoot." He chuckled and I shoved him. "Come on, Tink's tree house is this way."

We turned right at the T and continued for what felt like most of the morning. My stomach rumbled as we reached a clearing. Bae sat down on a log and handed me a fruit. It was pink and leafy on the outside with a white juicy centre. We sat and ate in silence then continued along. My feet were starting to get really sore when Bae finally stopped and turned to me.

"You're going to have to stay here. Like I said, Tink will want to stay on Pan's good side so if she knows you're with me she might go and tell Pan."

"Go tell Pan what?" The woman's strange accent startled me and I turned to see a short blond lady. She was talking to Bae but slowly looked down at me. "You didn't. You did not take Pan's hostage."

"She's my sister Tink. I couldn't let Felix take her. You know what he does to the girls."

She crossed her arms over her chest and stared me down.

"How is she your sister? You said your mother was dead."

I turned to see what Bae was going to say. I could tell he was thinking hard, trying to choose his words carefully.

"That pirate who used to work for Pan, Hook, that's her father. My mother ran away with him when I was young and apparently they had a baby together. Now she's here and I'm doing what any good big brother would; I'm taking care of her."

The woman shifted her gaze from Bae to me. I could tell she was trying to decide if she was going to tell on us or not.

"What were you doing her? If you didn't want me to know about her, why did you bring her here?"

"I need another sword. She's better with the blade than the bow, so I need one that will fit her. Do you think you'd be able to get one? I also need some supplies for a second bed in my hut. I don't want to have to sleep on the ground for the rest of the time we're here."

She nodded her head and headed up into her tree house. Bae gestured for me to follow him and we made our way up into the woman's home. It was small like Bae's, but more cluttered. Every corner was cluttered. I wandered into the corner left of the entrance. There was a big bookcase that had everything but books on it. Mostly vials of strange concoctions. There were vials with sands and dirt and dust; a larger one had dried mushrooms in it. I picked it up to examine it closer.

"DON'T. Do not touch that or eat that. It'll make you giant, and that's the last thing I need in my tree house."

I set it down gently. Bae was giggling at me. His arms were full of supplies so I rushed over to help take some of the load. He was also carrying a new hilt and sword.

"Did you get everything you need?"

"Yea, we'll be set for a while. On our way back I'll stop and try to hunt a little. Fruit can only sustain us for so long."

I nodded and started down the ladder. Bae tossed our supplies through the door and climbed down after them. We started dividing them between us so we could get on our way.

"Well, well. Looks like I'm getting my treasure back."

We both bolted around to see Pan, Felix and the other Lost boys surrounding us. There was no way we could escape them.


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter VIII**

"You said you were good with that thing, right?" Bae nodded towards my sword. I hadn't unsheathed it, but I had my hand on the hilt.

"Baelfire, she's 6. You really think she knows how to use a sword? Not to mention that eye is swollen nearly shut; it's a wonder she can see at all with her hair in her face like that." Pan gestured at my face as he talked. I tried to lunge at him but Bae caught my arm and held me back.

"If you can't control your anger you'll never be a good fighter Mar. Save your energy so you can use it right." His arm wrapped around my chest and he spoke softly into my ear. Pan and the Lost boys were laughing at my outburst. It just made me angrier. I breathed heavily through my nose. Slowly Bae let me go.

"Listen Pan, I get that you want to keep her hidden so if Hook does get back onto the island he won't be able to find her, but you don't see what hiding her in the echo caves is necessary. Let her stay with me."

"You always did love a damsel Baelfire. You do know I have your dear Wendy hidden away in there right? Too bad you'll never be able to get to her. I have some very special magic in there. It's a good thing you got a hold of your sister when you did. Too bad I'm going to have to take her from you now."

I turned and looked at Bae. _How did Pan know Bae was my brother?_ Bae was clearly thinking the same thing because he shrugged his shoulders at me.

"You're not taking her. I'll give you whatever you want Pan, but you can't have my sister. She's alright with me."

"Mm, I don't think so. She is my captive, so she is going to be treated as such. Felix, grab her." I pulled my sword as Felix approached me. The other boys drew their weapons when they saw mine. Felix stepped back away from my blade. "Well, well. Looks like we've got ourselves a little stand off. No matter. You're both probably of more use to me dead. Do what you must boys."

He turned and sauntered off into the jungle. The group of boys stood, surrounding us, weapons drawn. Bae and I were horribly out numbered.

"Think you can handle two of these, Mar?" Bae handed me his sword before climbing up two steps on Tink's ladder. I dropped the tip into the soil; it was heavier than the one in my other hand. I lifted it back up and Bae readied his bow. "Don't let any of their weapons touch you. They're all laced with dreamshade."

We all stood still for a moment, holding our breath. Then Bae let loose the first arrow.

Had I only been using one sword I may have fought better, but I was clumsy with the two. My forearms burned from the weight of the swords and my hair mixed with sweat stuck to my face. I was able to fight through many of the boys while Bae was able to take out quite a few from his perch on the ladder. I was fighting two, sometimes 3 at a time. My chest hurt from breathing so hard; there had to have been at least twenty of them but they never seemed to end. Having the second sword may have made me better able to fight the multiple opponents but it did slow me down.

My swords clashed with their daggers and dirks. I was a much better fighter than most of these boys, and I was half of their age. The fighters slowly thinned out and it became easier to see an escape in sight.

Finally the arrows and swords thinned out that there was just Bae, Felix and I. The other boys had retreated leaving Felix to fight Bae and I alone.

"So, it seems you've taken care of my friends, but you still have to deal with me." He started circling around me. Bae jumped down from the ladder and tried to take my second sword from me.

"No, I want to do this myself." I held both swords up in front of me. I was going to finish this so Pan would leave me alone once and for all. My whole body burned from the fighting I had just finished, and the ached with anticipation for the fight to come.

"Mar, I can help you. You can't take him on your own."

I was determined. I was going to show both of them that I didn't need anyone's help. I needed to prove it to myself more than anyone else.

"No. I have it handled."

He stepped back but made sure he had his bow at the ready. Felix lunged at me, his dirk aimed at my jugular. I crossed my swords, catching his and holding it. I pushed it to the right and he stumbled. I took the opportunity to slice his bicep. He grunted and came back up swinging his dirk at my face. I dodged it, ducking and swinging my sword at his leg. I missed and came back up just in time to meet his sword with my two again. I put all of my strength and energy into my swords, pushing them up to his face. Our faces were inches apart. He smiled villainously; his breath was vile.

"Ready to give up little girl?" He looked like a snake when he smiled like this.

"Not in your lifetime." I spit in his eye and he staggered backwards. I took advantage of him being distracted and kicked him in the groin. He fell to his knees. I dropped one of my swords and kicked him in the chest so he fell onto his back. I sat on his chest and put my sword up to his throat.

"I may be young, but I've been through a lot in the last few days. I would like it very much if you left me and my brother alone from now on, okay? Now run along to Pan and tell him he's not to bother us anymore. Do you understand?" He nodded sheepishly. I climbed off of him and he got up. "And if you do bother us again, my brother and I are going to kick your butts right off this stupid island."

He went running down the path, holding his crotch as he went. I turned to Bae who was standing a few feet away from me. He looked scared.

"What?"

"You're kind of scary when you're mad. Remind me to never tick you off." He walked over t slowly and bent down to pick the sword that I had tossed down. "You really are good with this thing, even with two of them. You should practice with the two, you could be a fierce fighter some day."

"Well if we ever get off this island I'll have to find my daddy, so maybe I will. The more swords I can fight with the better." I giggled. I didn't know how to feel about fighting with two swords, it seemed silly to me. Though when I considered how fighting the lost boys with the two swords had felt like maybe I could do it.

"How old did you say she was again, Bae?" The faerie had her head stuck out a window and was looking down at us. "She's quite the fighter for such a young thing."

"She is, and she's going to get even better. Thanks for the stuff Tink, we'll be seeing you around."

We gather our things again and set out back to our camp. A few time along the way we stopped so Bae could do some hunting. He was able to shoot a few small birds out of the trees so we would be able to have meat for a while. The sun was just finishing setting when we returned to our hut. Bae built another fire as the wind began picking up for a second cold night.

While he cooked our birds, I tried to set up a second bed. I tried moving the table over but it was too heavy.

"Just leave it, if I have to I'll sleep on the floor again tonight. I have plenty of time to set up another bed."

"Are you sure? I can sleep on the floor tonight if you want." He got up from the fire, birds in hand. They smelled delicious. He moved over to the bed and sat down, gesturing for me to join him. I skipped over and joined him.

"Do you think Pan will leave us alone?"

"Well, Felix definitely isn't going to bother you anymore. I can't make any promises about Pan, but you nearly single handedly defeated all of the lost boys today, so I doubt we'll be seeing much of them anytime soon." I bit into the bird. It was juicy and tasted delicious; it definite improvement from all of the fruit. We sat in silence while we ate. It started to rain just as we were climbing into our beds.

"Bae?"

"Yeah, Mar?"

"I miss my daddy, but I'm glad I get a brother out of this."

"I'm glad we got each other out of this too, Mar."

For the first time in three nights I fell asleep smiling.


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter IX**

Years passed. Nobody came or went from the island. Time continued to tick but it didn't really feel like. Bae and I practiced with our swords. I got great with the two swords, and I got good enough with the bow and arrow that I could actually hit the target. We hunted, and fished, traded with Tink. Pan and the lost boys never bothered us again. The tallies on Bae's wall got grew and grew. Nobody came for us.

"If we ever get off of this island, where are you going to go?" I was laying on my bed with my feet up on the wall and my head hanging off the edge.

"A land without magic. I was there before the shadow brought me here."

"Why did the shadow take you?"

He was quiet for a moment.

"I was protecting a friend. Pan ended up getting her anyways. I've tried to find her, but it's impossible."

"You're sure?"

"Yea, I've tried more times than I can count." We both sat quietly for a few minutes. He was cooking a rabbit he had caught earlier that day. The smell of it on the fire filled the small hut, creating a warm comforting feeling. Bae and I had become a family. We both missed our fathers, but we had found each other and learned how to be happy without them.

"Bae? What will you do in this land with no magic? Who will you be?"

He turned away from the fire and stared at me while he thought. His hair was really long now, he asked me to cut it once and a while but he seemed to like it long. His cheeks were red from staring into the fire while he cooked. Neither of us had aged at all since we arrived here.

"I guess I'll have to wait and see what kind of world the land with no magic is. It was much more modern there than it is here, but it's also been decades since I was there. I can only imagine what it's like there now." I pondered for a minute.

"Will you change your name when you get there? Or will you stay Baelfire?"

"I don't know I haven't really thought about it. Why are you asking all of this?"

"I'm just wondering. I don't know. I guess I'm just thinking about getting off of here one day. I don't know where I'll go if I do. I have no idea what's happened to my daddy, if he's okay, if he knows that I'm okay. I was thinking I might go wherever you go."

He smiled as he got up. He took the rabbit off the fire and started preparing our plates.

"I'd be happy if you came with me. We're a family Mar." I smiled and straightened up as he walked over with our food. We ate in silence.

"Neal."

"What?"

"I'd call myself Neal. Wendy had a friend named Neal back in London. I liked the name." I nodded and sucked the last piece of meat off the thighbone I'd be chewing on. "What would you call yourself if we get to go to the land with no magic?"

I thought about his question. I hadn't ever thought about needing a different name.

"I've never actually thought about it before. I guess I'd just go by our mother's name. It seems simple enough."

"No, that's too obvious. What if we end up back in the enchanted forest and Black Beard goes looking for you? Or worse, my father hears about you and decides to look into you?"

"You think he'd hurt me? But my daddy would know it was me, so there's that.

"I don't know, he might not even care. But you should still come up with something a little bit more original."

I thought again, harder and longer this time. Different names drifted through my head, but none of them seemed right. I liked my own name. Daddy had chosen it just for me, why would I ever want to change it?

"Cassidy? That's a pretty name."

"Hm." He pursed his lips as he thought about my suggestion. "I like it. It's a pretty name. It suits you."

I smiled at him, proud of myself for finding a name he liked. I got up, taking his plate as I did, and walked over to the little table at the back of the hut to clean them and put them away. Bae got up and went to stoke the little fire by the door. It was dark but the night was calm. A cool breeze blew through the hut, making me glad for the fire. Days in the jungle were warm and muggy, but the nights were always cool.

I dragged my feet over to my bed. We had had a long day of practicing with our weapons and hunting. My arms ached from wielding my two swords. My body felt heavy and I was excited for sleep. I crawled under my covers and settled in for the night. I knew sleep was going to take me quickly and before I knew it the world faded away into darkness.

"Mara, MARA! Wake up, come on, wake up Mara!" Someone was whispering loudly in my ear and shaking me. I thought maybe it was mummy again, but as I came to I realized it was a boys voice. I slowly opened my eyes to see a boy around Bae's age bending over me. His hair was long and brown; his face seemed familiar but I couldn't seem to place where I'd seen him before.

I shot straight up and yelled, trying to wake up Bae. I stood on my bed with my back against the wall; the stranger was standing between my swords and me so there was no way I could defeat him.

"Mara, it's okay, it's just m-" He fell over with Bae on top of him. The boy tried to roll over so he could face Bae, but he couldn't quite get around. Bae pushed the boys face down into the pallet.

"Who are you!? Why are you here?" We could hear the boy mumble something into the mattress.

"Let his head go, I can't hear what he's saying." Bae looked at me suspiciously and slowly moved his hand off the stranger's head. The boy turned his head to the side and sucked in air.

"Mara, it's me, Louis! I came back for you!" Bae and I looked up at each other and just stared for a moment. That's why he'd seemed so familiar. His father was the one who had kidnapped me; I had slept in his bed because he didn't want me to freeze on deck.

"What do you mean you came back for me? It's been years. Almost fifteen. Where have you been?"

"I know, I'm sorry. I wasn't exactly able to leave my father's ship to come find you. Something's happened in the Enchanted Forest, I didn't know if it had affected you here and I wanted to make sure you were okay. It's taken me a while to get here."

"How long is a while?" Bae asked as he climbed off of Louis. "What happened?"

"The Evil Queen. She cast a curse. Everyone in the Enchanted Forest is gone. It's been 5 years since everyone disappeared. There's one place that wasn't touched, and those of us out at sea were spared. We don't know where they went."

"What about my daddy? What happened to him? He was one of the one's who was spared?" My heart started pounding, I didn't dare think that daddy had been ripped away from the Enchanted Forest. There was no way I'd be able to find him if he had.

"He's still around. He's working with the Evil Queen's mother now though, and she's scarier than her daughter ever was." I sighed with relief. There was still hope that I'd find him.

"Why did the Evil Queen do this? I didn't think she was that powerful." Bae sat on the floor. His head was cocked to the side, thinking.

"She shouldn't be, but she was trained by the Dark One. She hates Snow White, her stepdaughter. No one really knows why. Rumor has it, she has a magic mirror who told her than Snow White was prettier than her, but who knows for sure. Women are crazy." I turned and gave him the dirtiest look I could muster.

"The Dark One would be able to cast a curse that strong." Bae picked at something on the ground as he spoke. He knew first hand the strength of the Dark One.

"So, are you just here to see if I'm okay, or are you going to help us get off this stupid island?" I put my hands on my hips as I asked. I wouldn't have been surprised if he just came to make sure his father's treasure was still safe, but I was hoping he was there for me.

"Well, I came to get you, I didn't anticipate having to take anyone else with me." He looked shyly at Bae.

"Well you're going to have to. I'm not leaving without Bae."

"Mar, it's okay. If he can't take me then that's fine. I've gotten used to being here." Bae got up and started leaving the room. I got up and followed him, grabbing his arm to stop him.

"No, if he can't take both of us he's not taking either of us." I turned to Louis as I talked. I wasn't leaving Bae here for who knows how long, we'd both been here long enough.

"Are you almost done Lou? I'm hungry." A whiny boy about my size walked into the hut. He looked just like Louis; he had long sandy brown hair and big dark brown eyes. He was tall and thin.

"Isaac, I said stay outside, I'd only be a little while. We'll get something to eat when we get back." Louis pushed passed Bae and I to get to the new boy.

"Who's this?" I gestured to the boy. He had to be my age, give or take a year. Louis got up and ran to the door where the boy stood.

"My brother. He was born just before the curse. We've been on at sea since, so it hasn't affected us like others. Where the Evil Queen's mother is, time has stood still. That's where your father is most of the time. I can take you back to him Mara."

I turned to Bae. I wanted to go with him, but I wanted to see my daddy again. I didn't expect he would want to come back to the Enchanted Forest with me. He seemed to have the same thought as me.

"Is the Dark One still in the Enchanted Forest?"

"No, he left with the curse."

I stared at Bae, pleading that he come with me.

"How are we getting off? Pan is probably already on his way."

"We're getting off with this." Louis pulled a clear bean out of his pocket.

"Is that a magic bean?" Bae rushed over to Louis to examine the bean. Bae had told me that it was a magic bean that had gotten him to the land with no magic years earlier.

"Can we all go through?" I walked over to where the three boys were standing. They were all examining the bean together.

"Yea, of course. You just have to think of a place when you jump into the portal and you'll go there." Louis spoke up before Bae had a chance to.

"What about a person? What if I thought about my daddy when we jumped in, would it take me to my daddy?" Bae spoke up this time.

"I don't think it works that way. I'm pretty sure it's just a place. That's what the Blue Faerie told me anyways." I nodded my head sadly.

"But if we jump in we can get to the safe haven, if your daddy isn't there the people who are will know where he is. We'll be able to find him Mara."

I couldn't take my eyes off of Bae. I wanted him to come with me. To come find my daddy with me so the three of us could be a family. I just wanted to be a family so bad. He stared back. I could tell he knew what I was thinking and trying to make up his mind as to if he would come with me. Finally he looked down at his feet. He'd made up his mind.

"Does everyone have to go to the same place?"

"I don't really know why?" Louis seemed really confused at Bae's question. Bae turned back to me, his eyes were sad.

"Bae please. Please come with me. I thought we were a family." He walked over to me and grabbed my arm, pulling me away from Louis and his brother.

"Mar, I promised myself I wouldn't go back there. We are family, so come with me. It's been years since you've seen your papa, come with me and we can be a family." I couldn't believe my ears. How could he be trying to talk me out of finding my daddy?

"No, I have to find my daddy. If you want to go to your land with no magic then go. But I'm going with Louis. He'll help me find my daddy." I pulled my arm out of his hand and went back over to the other boys. "Let's get going. Pan will probably be here anytime."

Bae pushed passed me and grabbed Louis, dragging him out of the hut. I followed them to the door but stayed inside, eavesdropping on them.

"You have to take care of her. If you don't I'm holding you responsible and if I ever come back here and find out that you haven't taken care of her, I will take care of you." Louis puffed his chest out. I rolled my eyes at the silly display of manliness.

"I'll take care of her. I promise. I may have only known her for a few days, but I do care about her. I wouldn't have come back for her if I didn't."

"Yea, well you didn't exactly rush back here." Bae turned to come back into the hut but Louis caught his arm and held him back.

"I came as soon as I could. I've regretted letting my father hand her over to Pan since I lost sight of her that day. I'm here now, and I'm going to take the best care of her I can. I promise you."

Bae stood there, staring at Louis for a moment before sighing and nodding his head. Louis released him and they came back into the hut. Bae didn't say a word; he just grabbed me and hugged me. I wanted to cry. I didn't want another goodbye, I wanted him to come with me.

"Take your swords, keep practicing. We'll see each other again. I can feel it."

"How? You're going to the land with no magic!"

"Just trust me okay? I have a feeling. You know my feelings." I squeezed him harder. I wasn't going to cry. I refused.

He finally let go of me and rubbed his eyes. I didn't want to let the tears fall, but I did. He hugged me again when he saw me crying.

"It's going to be okay Mar. Louis is going to take care of you for me. And I know we'll see each other again. I just know it. Now go and find your dad." He let me go and ruffled my hair. I went over to the table where I had left my swords the night before. I tied my scabbards around my waist and turned around the hut. I didn't want to leave anything important behind.

"We have to go Mara, we've been here too long already. We can't risk any more time." Louis urged me. I turned to face them; they were standing together waiting for me. Bae's eyes were watery and he was staring at me sadly.

"Okay, I'm ready." I walked over and hugged Bae again. I held on to him as we walked out of the hut. The jungle was empty of Lost boys and oddly quiet. Louis squeezed the bean and tossed it ahead of us.

"I'm going to wait and jump in after you three, that way we don't all get mixed up, okay? Don't think about your daddy, think about the safe haven. You don't know what might happen if you think of your daddy." I nodded and he let me go. "I'll miss you Mar. You're the best little sister I could have asked for."

He smiled as I took Louis hand and jumped into the portal. I thought hard about the safe haven. We spun and spun and spun until I thought my head was going to snap off my neck we were spinning so hard. I screamed as I lost my grip on Louis' hand I didn't want to lose them, I didn't want to be alone. I closed my eyes and tried to stay calm. The portal pushed and pulled me and I didn't know if I would even survive this.

Just when I thought it was never going to end, I landed flat on my stomach in some grass.

"MARA! MARA! Oh my god I thought I'd lost you! Baelfire would have killed me." Louis grabbed me and helped me up. We'd landed on a beach, just feet from a wooded area. Isaac was on his knees panting not far from me on my right. "Are you okay? You're not hurt are you?"

"No, no. I'm fine. Just a little bit out of breath, that's all. I'll be fine."

"Well, who do we have here? I don't believe I've ever seen you three before."

At the foot of the woods a woman stood, examining us. She was dressed regally and had dark brown hair.

"Who are you?" Louis inquired as he helped his brother up. "Is this the safe haven?"

She looked at us curiously, deciding what to tell us.

"Yes, this is the safe haven, and you can call me Cora."


End file.
